Great Parks has begun the process of refilling the lake at Sharon Woods and set a rough date for the walking trail to reopen.
"We closed the valve on Sharon Lake [Thursday], meaning we're allowing the water to fill back up in the lake so we can proceed towards getting it open in February," Great Parks CEO Todd Palmeter tells WVXU.
Palmeter says the lake reconstruction work is complete, but it will still be a few months before the new fishing piers and kayak launch are installed. The walking trail around Sharon Lake remains closed for now while that work continues.
He says that's expected to be completed in late February.
At that point, the trail will be open, along with other amenities around the lake, including the new parking area.
Temporary harbor facilities will open in summer 2026. The temporary boathouse will be on the east side of the lake at Lakeside Lodge. The Sharon Woods Boathouse remains closed for the upcoming renovation of the harbor and boathouse area.
When can I fish at Sharon Lake?
Fishing will remain restricted for several years. That's because once the lake is full, it will be restocked with young fish.
"We want to give about three years for the fish to grow and to further populate in the lake, so we will not be allowing fishing when it first opens," says Palmeter. "It's for good reason because it won't really be very good fishing until we can reestablish the population in the lake."
Work on Sharon Lake began in April 2024. Reconstruction was originally supposed to wrap up in mid-2025. Earlier this year, that date was pushed to late fall of 2025. Palmeter says general delays were coupled with portions of the walking trail needing to be relocated because of stabilization issues, and additional repairs that were needed on the Kreis Dam.
"When we had rain events, snow events, storm events, parts of the lake would fill back up. And then we did add some additional work at the dam," says Palmeter. "Once the water was down on the lake, we could work on the full dam. The dam was completed in 1936 so it needed some work on the stone work and some structural works. All that work was also completed while the lake was empty."
The projected cost of the project is $15.4 million. Its being paid for by a combination of outside funding from foundations, the Land & Water Conservation Fund, the State of Ohio Capital Improvement Fund, and the 2016 Great Parks operating levy.
Sharon Lake was created in 1936 as a recreation area by the Works Progress Administration. It was last dredged and cleaned in the 1980s, according to Great Parks.
Read more:
